Apartments continued to be the most popular proposed housing type in Chester County in 2018 – a trend that started a few years ago – but there also was an increase in proposals for single-family detached homes.

While residential lots/units increased significantly overall, from 2,800 in 2017 to approximately 3,700 in 2018, apartments remained the largest proposed housing type (1,482 in 2018 versus 1,208 in 2017), according to the Chester County Planning Commission. Apartment proposals were followed by single-family detached homes (1,061 in 2018 versus 610 in 2017) and townhouses (959 in 2018 versus 800 in 2017).

“This was the first year since 2009 that the Planning Commission reviewed more than 1,000 single-family detached lots/units in a single year,” said Planning Commission Assistant Director Carol Stauffer.

In 2018, much of the proposed development occurred in core employment and development areas, including Phoenixville, Great Valley, Exton, West Chester, Downingtown, and Kennett. In fact, 2018 was the fourth year in a row that more than 90 percent of all proposed residential lots/units were located within a growth area designation of Landscapes2 and Landscapes3, the county’s comprehensive plan.

The 10 largest official plan submissions reviewed by the Planning Commission in 2018 proposed more than 200 residential units or more than 150,000 square feet of non-residential structural square footage, according to Senior Review Planner Paul Farkas. View graphics of Chester County development trends.